Friday

Most of the students and the STW’s went to Vienna today. It’s our first and really only day off in the two weeks we are here. We will have class again tomorrow. And even though there are no classes on Sunday we will have a worship service in the morning and then a big lunch. Sunday afternoon we do get a little break and take anyone who wants to go up to Baden. It’s about 18 KM (11 miles) up the road from here. Mozart composed an Alleluia for the small church there. Beethoven lived there for awhile while he was writing most of his Missa Solemnis. It’s a very interesting little apartment he lived in for that time. Then it’s back to classes again on Monday – Thursday with the final that morning.

Pam and I decided to stay back on campus today instead of going to Vienna. I know… VIENNA… how could you NOT go? We have gone in the past many times, not that makes a real difference anyway. I have some paper work to finish up for the Sunday service and Pam had some work for her class also. And it’s going to get into the low 90’s today and in Vienna (in the flat lands) it’s going to get even hotter. But the real reason - there’s a pool here!

Since I’m going to be a little busy on Sunday and the rest of the week, let me tell you a little bit about our worship service for Sunday. It’s my class’s responsibility to plan the worship service. I really would love to plan one AFTER the students have taken the whole class, but…

We have an international worship team made up of 2 Americans, a Bulgarian, a Moldovan, a Belarusian and a Belarusian pianist; A special from the Moldovan group and the Bulgarian group, and a testimony all leading up to the central point of the service - communion. We are starting the service with a video with scripture reading in three different languages while the video is going; and the most different idea? No preaching. This will be a first for most of the students especially when most of the students are used to having at least 2 sermons and a worship service that lasts for a good 2 hours.

When we finally finished planning and wrote the outline up one of my students asked why we are having such a short worship service. Then I explained to him about how we have 3 services in a row and why we have 3 in a row. And with a little smile on his face he just shook his head in disbelief.

Communion will be real different also. We are planning to put a table in the center of the room with all the chairs (all 102) around it facing the center. Then when it’s time to partake everyone will come to the table and take a piece of bread and a cup and go back to their seats and take them when they are ready. Most have communion once a month and then it’s handed out like most of our churches do in the states.

Almost time for lunch.